Fall in the Midwest

Aaaaaah! There's nothing quite like fall in the Midwest. It's cool, the leaves are turning colors (wish I had thought to take a camera with me yesterday when I was out), and today the sun is shining. It's my favorite time of the year - but wait until spring gets here, and I'll probably say the same thing about it!

We took a trip to northern Michigan a couple of weeks ago. I'd never been to Michigan at all, and I fell in love with that part of the state. The weather was less than desirable the week we were there, but we were with friends and had a great time in spite of the rain and cold. Of course, as soon as we left, the weather improved. Never fails!

I have a Christmas-themed quilt on the longarm and will share it when the time is right. It's pretty much occupying all my time right now, but I did buy some fabric when I was up north, so some new table runners are in my future:

The Rainforest Rings pattern is one I bought during our Alaskan cruise a couple of years ago, but I've never found the right fabric. On our first full day in Michigan, hubby was playing golf, and I made it my "visit the quilt shops" day. My first stop was Renee's House of Quilting. It was a great shop with super friendly staff. I could have spent a bundle, but I behaved myself.
I bought the floral and dark fabrics while I was there:

I didn't have the pattern with me, so I wasn't sure on the yardage needed. I decided I'd better wait on the background/backing fabric until I was back home and could see how much I truly needed.

I also went to Interquilten  in Interlochen. It's a really cute little shop with some fantastic fabrics. That's where I picked up the Easy Curves pattern pictured above. It takes just three FQs and some yardage:

Want to put bets on whether I finish these by the end of the year?

On the drive up north, I finished up a prayer shawl, and on the way back I started a sock. It was really easy - just a tube-style sock - and I finished it this week. That's what I do while watching TV at night.

And someday I might make the other one!

Last, but not least, I've been looking for a more portable sewing machine to take to sewing days, classes, etc. I went to an estate sale last week and found this:

It really isn't lightweight by any stretch of the imagination, but it was so clean and worked so beautifully, I couldn't pass it up. It's a Domestic machine, manufactured in Cleveland in the 1940s/50s. I'll continue my search for an older Singer of some kind (that's what I think I really want), but I'll be using this one quite a bit in the meantime.

Okay, enough about me! Time to get back to quilting!

From My Pieceful Corner,

Louise